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Egyptian Holy War
The Egyptian Holy War was an invasion launched by the Ottoman Empire and it's CEL allies in the middle part of 1970 after several controversies surrounding the Ottoman and Egyptian border at the Suez Canal. The invasion was framed in terms of a Islamic Holy War, as the Sultan of Egypt had declared himself Caliph and the Sultan of Ottoman Turkey called this declaration false and an afront to Islam. Following the Ottoman push across the Suez canal, the Ethiopian Empire joined and invaded Egypt from the south. Ottoman and Ethiopian forces defeated Egyptian forces after the prolonged sieges of Cairo and Khartoum respectively. Both forces met later in the year at the center of Egypt, dividing the conquered territory in half at the Tropic of Cancer, the Ottomans taking the northern portion, Egypt proper, and the Ethiopians taking the southern portion, Sudan. The Sultan of Egypt fled the country during the war and disappeared, his whereabouts unknown to this day. Causes Canaan Affair Throughout the early part of 1970, eight seperate naval incidents occured that together would cast suspiscion on Egyptian government and it's motives. Each incident was the same; an ship belonging to the Egyptian navy would be spotted in the Exclusive Economic Zone of the Ottoman Empire off the coast of Canaan. When questioned, the ships crew would claim navigational errors. In one of these incidents, an Egyptian ship was boarded by the Ottoman coast guard, and evidence was found that the Egyptian claims were true. Despite this evidence, Ottoman Intelligence suspected it was possible that this evidence was planted, and that these incidents were cases of Egyptian reconnaissance gone wrong, citing evidence that the ship boarded could feasibly be used as a transport. The Egyptian Navy apologized for these incidents. Egyptian Militarization Aerial photographs of the western side of the Suez Canal showed evidence of an increased Egyptian military presence. The Ottoman Empire responded by increasing their military presence on the eastern side of the Canal, as well as recruiting more people from Israel. These activities were framed by the Ottomans as being for the purpose of quelling religious unrest. Second Suez Crisis This occured when Egyptian forces stationed on the western bank of the canal began taunting the Ottoman forces on the eastern bank. The Ottoman forces fired their weapons in the air in order to scare the Egyptian taunters into shutting up. The Egyptians continued to taunt the Turks, and when the Egyptians got on a boat along the canal, the irritated Ottoman garrison opened fire. Out of the fifty Egyptian soldiers who were part of that garrison, nineteen were killed. The Egyptian government responded by calling the incident the "Suez Massacre", and tensions between the two nations escalated. Despite this, both sides were pressured by the international community to stand down, as other nations feared that a conflict over the Suez Canal would interrupt world trade. Several weeks later, a group of Egyptian terrorists threatened to bomb the canal unless the Ottoman Empire recognize the Sultan of Egypt as the true Caliph. Suleiman III, the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, responded by gathering support in Europe and forming the CEL, or Central Eurasian League, and declaring a Jihad against the Sultan of Egypt. Initial Invasion CEL Moves In The Ottoman forces attacked Egyptian bases and towns along the Suez Canal, quickly breaking through and pushing the stunned Egyptian forces across the canal at important points such as Port Said. CEL forces joined in the conflict at several points, as the Arab navy assaulted Egyptian ports along the Red Sea, and French Forces swept in from their western colonies to split Egypt in half. Ethiopia Becomes Involved The Ethiopian Empire, having just obtained the Belgian Congo, was looking to further their expansion in Africa. The Ottoman Empire and Ethiopia made a deal regarding Egypt; Ethiopia would be given the Egyptian territory south of the Tropic of Cancer in exchange for their aid in both the Egyptian War and the mounting Turkish Campaign in the Pacific. Agreeing to these terms, the Ethiopian Empire joined the war on the side of the Turks. Northern Theatre Siege of Cairo The Turkish army, commanded by Abbas Ibn Hasun Kaya Jr, The fight for Cairo started with a massive combination artillery bombardment and aerial bombing campaign, causing signifigant civilian death as the cities defenses were leveled. The Egyptian army attempted a counter attack, but were torn apart by Turkish Artillery. Fighting poured into the streets of Cairo itself, as fighting became house to house. The artilerry of both the Turks and the Egyptians continued to duel as snipers filled the streets with blood. The Egyptians continued to hold the line in hopes of successfully evacuating the city, but Turkish forces managed to damage the power grid and shut down the subway system, which had been integral to the evacuation. Despite the Sultan of Egypts orders to hold the city at all costs, the remaining Egyptian forces surrendered. The siege gained the nickname "Battle of Ada" among Turkish forces, with the word "Ada" meaning a house block; a reference to the nature of the fighting within the city itself March South The Turkish forces began to push south along the nile, fighting local militias and the remnants of the Sultans armies as they continued forward. Their targets were the Assiut Barage and Aswan Damn. The Arabian miltiary invaded from the coast of the Red Sea, and marched to meet up with the Turks at Aswan. As the Turks marches south, supporters of the Ottoman Caliphate joined them and formed an informal militia called the "Sadik Brigage". The first target the Turks assaulted was the Assiut Barage. The Egyptian force holding the damn surrendered and the damn was blow up. Following this, the Turks struck Aswan Dam, where the Egyptian forces attempted to hold the fortified dam. Turkish artillery tore the damn apart and killed many of the Egyptians. The remaining defenders were swept up by Turkish forces. The fall of Aswan signalled the end of the Northern Campaign. Southern Theatre March to Khartoum While the Northern Theatre was dominated by Ottoman forces, the Southern Theatre was similarly dominated by Ethiopian forces. Crossing the Ethiopian and Egyptian border, the two respective forces came into conflict first at Otrub (around the same time the Siege of Cairo was finishing up), where a small local militia of only six members attempted to assault the Ethiopian North Corp, which was under the Command of Ras Zayed. They were quickly dispatched, but not before managing to kill three times their number. The Ethiopians met up with south Sudanese tribesmen who supported the overthrow of the Sultan, and the combined forces continued to march to Khartoum. Sudanese tribesmen also managed to destroy Roseires Dam, damaging the power grid in the south. Siege of Khartoum After requesting the surrender of the town, the Ethiopian artillery opened fire on Khartoum, where a signifigant Egyptian force was still standing. In the nearby villages of Sawba and Tayyib, Ethiopian forces attempting to exploit a weakness in the Egyptian line, leading to street fighting on the edge of the city. As the street fighting continued with heavy casualties to both sides, the Egyptians eventually found themselves pinned and lost control of Khartoum itself. Within a few days of the fall of Khartoum itself, the pinned Egyptian forces were forced to surrender, leaving only a fraction of the Egyptian military left to fend for the country with their bedouin allies. March to Aswan Zayed led his men north to Atbarah, a stop on the way to the tropic of cancer where Egyptian and Ethiopian forces were slated to meet. A small Egyptian force held Atbarah itself, but the fighting for the town was relatively light, only lasting an hour before ending with Ethiopian forces victorious. After Atbarah, Ethiopian forces took Wadi Halfa from a small pro-Egypt bedouin force; the last of the Egyptian presence on the nile itself. An Ethiopian messenger was sent down the Nile to deliver the message personally to the Turks that Wadi Halfa had fell. Aftermath Bur Sudan After the connection between the Turks and the Ethiopian forces was made, the only stronghold left for the Egyptians was Bur Sudan. It would take a while, but eventually Bur Sudan would fall to the Ethiopian navy, officially ending Egyptian control of the region. Egypt Split As agreed upon, all of Egypt north of the Tropic of Cancer went to the Ottoman Empire as their Egyptian Province, whereas all of Egypt south of the Tropic of Cancer went to the Ethiopian Empire as their Sudan territory. Sultan of Egypt Disappears The Sultan of Egypt was never caught during the war, and his whereabouts continue to be a mystery six years later. Several theories exist as to where exactly he went, that puts him everywhere from dead, to in a secret Turkish Prison, to hiding out somewhere in Arabia, though no evidence of any of these stories has been produced. Category:Conflicts Category:Middle East Category:Africa Category:Ethiopia